Commuters in Lahore were distraught over the weekend as Metro Bus operations remained suspended on account of the drivers’ strike.
Their demands include that Al-Bayrak (the company currently operating the metro bus project) give them bonuses and raises, among other benefits.
Conversely, Al-Bayrak has termed the protest as ‘an attempt of defamation’. Its subsidiary M/s Turizm, which is responsible for running metro bus operations in Lahore, stated that its contract with the provincial government ends on 31 August and that the drivers’ protests for the last 10 days is unlawful.
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Al-Bayrak held a press conference on Sunday in which its Manager of Human Resources Asia Ramzan said:
The drivers didn’t raise these issues through protests over the last eight years. Why they are protesting now, especially at a time when our contract is about to end. So we are not liable to accept their demands, as the third party/firm, which had actually recruited them, should resolve their issues.
She added,
We are taking the ongoing situation as a conspiracy to defame the Turkish firm, as was done in the case of the Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC), when its (firm’s) entire machinery and other assets were taken over by the government through police, just 10 days before the expiry of the contract extension period on various pretexts.
